Drew Dixon
Jacksonville saw a second jump in confirmed coronavirus cases Thursday.
The evening Florida Department of Health update on COVID-19 data showed Duval County’s confirmed cases climbed to 82. That’s up from the figure of 74 at 11 a.m. Thursday. The number of deaths from the affliction in Jacksonville held steady at 3, though.
The DOH coronavirus “dashboard” on the agency’s website shows there were 37 men and 41 women who contracted it in Duval County. Those who tested positive range from 13 years old to 91 and the average age is 55.
Eight of those Jacksonville cases are travel-related while 19 are not. Another 55 cases are not known if they were related to travel, the DOH said.
The Jacksonville numbers come on the day when Gov. Ron DeSantis visited Duval County. Thursday DeSantis toured the public and free COVID-19 testing site in a parking lot at TIAA Bank Field. That’s where LabCorp has been administering tests for free to people of all ages.
Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry was at the stadium where the Jacksonville Jaguars play as DeSantis toured the testing site. Curry said on his Twitter feed that Duval County testing remains robust on people seeking to see if they had contracted the virus.
Another site that charges for testing has been opened at the Prime Osborn Convention Center in downtown Jacksonville. That’s also the site of a new federal field hospital that is being stationed in case local hospitals exceed capacity, though that has not happened as of Thursday.
Curry also said he’s held discussions with local court officials and Florida Supreme Court officials and “writs of possession” have been suspended until April 17. That means landlords and property owners where businesses are located cannot evict tenants in that time.
There have been 1,473 tests administered in Jacksonville, according to DOH figures. Out of those, 1,104 have come back negative.
The statewide figures also increased Thursday night. There were 2,484 confirmed cases across Florida, according to the DOH. That’s up from 2,335 reported at the 11 a.m. update Thursday. There were 29 deaths from coronavirus in the Sunshine State. That’s up by one compared to the 11 a.m. report.
Meanwhile, there have been 29,114 tests administered across the state with 28,855 negative results and another 1,774 tests pending.
Nationally, there are now 83,507 cases across the United States. Out of those cases, 1,178 people have died from the infection.
Around the world, there have been 529,093 coronavirus cases were confirmed as of Thursday night. Out of those cases, 23,709 people have died globally.
